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Expeditioners in the News
Students on Ice Arctic Expedition 2012 News
News stories about the expedition are posted below. Expedition participants are
encouraged to send any media coverage you have received and we will post links
here.
Email mark 'at' studentsonice.com with your articles, interviews, audio and
video. Check back regularly for updates!
Check out this video from Shaw TV News (Saskatoon) featuring expeditioners
Alana Krug-McLeod and Danno Peters.
Land and air, snow and water… : Naval aviator, in the company of
penguins, scuba diving.
Meet Malaika Vaz. She has so many accolades to her name it is difficult
to name them all.
What would you expect a preppy, lissom 15-year old to talk of?
Justin Bieber? Boho braids? Sock bun? Tangerine and citron yellow as the hot
2012 autumn colours? Well, most — almost all — 15-year olds would go
Bieber-ish. However, this 15-year old can knock off all clichéd definitions of
being a teenager.
Standing tall — very tall — at 5 ft 11 inches, this Goan 10
grader can in one long breath talk of Alex Haley’s Roots, hum John
Lennon’s “Imagine”, look deep into your eyes and convince you that global
warming can have catastrophic consequences, narrate stories about her
Antarctica expedition, sing paeans to her inspirations David Attenborough and
Mike Pandey, talk sedulously of her dream of being an environment crusader and
show with pride the sweat glistening on her forehead after a long day at sea
practicing wind surfing. This 15-year old can completely take you by surprise.
Her earnestness is real. Her optimism contagious. Her enthusiasm meticulous.
Her dreams irrefutable.
Her name: Malaika Vaz.
Her credentials: Countless. She is ranked No. 3 in national
wind surfing. No. 2 in Regatta. She was the only Asian selected for The
Students on Ice Expedition into Antarctica. She was the first girl to be a
Naval Aviator for a day. She is brand ambassador for KOOH and Woodland
Adventures. While you read this, she’d be in Thailand honing her skills to
become the Asian windsurfing champion. And soon, she’d grow wings by acquiring
a pilot’s license in Winnipeg, Canada. And no, she never goes Bieber-ish.
That’s not her idea of a teenaged delight.
She revels in Lennon’s Imagine-d world where there is no
heaven, no hell…Above us only the sky. Imagine everyone living for today...
Imagine there are no countries. Nothing to kill or die for. There’s no
religion…
Reiterate the lyrics and Malaika will tell you that Lennon’s
“Imagine” should be the unofficial national anthem of all countries.
Surprised that a 15-year-old can pack so many dreams and ideas
in her lithe frame? Quiz her about it and she’d vehemently assert that she is
“not too young to think of the environment. Or, to dream to save the
environment — and the world — by spreading awareness through wildlife
documentaries”. Her teenage streak peeps in when she tells you “it is all right
to call me a kid” and she “loves spending times with her friends” but prefers
“reading and writing.”
Not many summers have gone by for this Aries girl who was born
with a Vaz surname. The Vazs’ are one of Goa’s leading business families. She
grew up amidst the verdant greens; took to the sea like a duck. But for Malaika
swimming was not merely about efficient strokes and counting laps — it was in
these depths that she fell in love with the Nature, specially marine life. She
swam, completed her advanced open diver certification for scuba diving. Her
parents never pushed their first-born towards academics. Perhaps they had a
premonition that their little girl was destined for a life beyond the perfect
A+ grades.
Malaika loves the colour pink and Goan Konkani food. She also
has a pet peeve — littering. She is coaxing her friends to become
environment-friendly and she is optimist that the someday soon our environment
will stop hurtling towards disaster. If she had a magic wand, she would swoosh
it in air to metamorphose this world into a nuclear-free zone. She’d swish it
again to turn the clock back and bring all extinct species back into life,
specially China’s Yangtze River dolphin. She is keeping her fingers crossed
that the tigers and whales will survive the onslaught and live happily
ever-after as an essential component of our existence.
Didn’t I tell you this tall — very tall — 15-year-old can
defy all clichéd definitions of being a teenager? She surfs with the wind
proficiently. All she needs is the wind beneath her wings.
By Meera Vasudevan
Deccan Chronicle
September 25, 2012
A couple of days ago, I read about the illustrious ‘Students on Ice
Expeditions’ programme which allows youngsters between the ages of 14-18
years to participate in educational expeditions to the Arctic and the
Antarctic circles.
One such deserving candidate who explored the Antarctic in December
2011- January 2012, is Malaika Vaz, a gifted and hard-working Indian
student from Goa, having already explored the Arctic (in 2011) with the
same team.
Fourteen-year-old Malaika is involved in tiger and whale conservation; a
voracious reader; a certified scuba diver and a national- level
windsurfer.
She has visited Steve Irwin’s farm in Australia, participated in the
naturalist skills workshops at Romulus Whitaker’s Crocodile Bank and the
environmental camp at the Andaman Islands.
‘Students on Ice Expeditions’ was introduced to inspire and educate
talented and environmentally-aware activists and scientists.
The polar exploration and research provides them with a greater
understanding and respect for the planet.
Geoff Green, a leading Canadian adventurer, environmentalist and
educator, is the founder and executive director of this award-winning
educational organisation based in Gatineau, Quebec, Canada and has been
leading expeditions and adventures from pole to pole for the past 15
years.
Geoff and his team of experts inspires the student participants to feel
one with the land and undergo a deep emotional connect with nature.
This bonding, they sincerely believe, will transform the way the younger
generations will understand and act in this world.
The ambitious Vaz, who aspires to make wildlife documentaries, says that
through this expedition, she has made friends for life.
Completely aware of the existing level of man-made damage to the earth,
Malaika says, “No matter what part of the world you’re from, little things
you do affect the Antarctic, and what affects the Antarctic today will
affect the world tomorrow.” Her words, I hope, will hit a note deep in the
heart of each Indian.
Polar bears, icebergs and the effects of climate change on the Arctic are
three things that will stand out in Isabella Thorsteinsdottir’s memories from a
trip to Nunavut and Greenland last month.
The Grade 11 Dover Bay Secondary School student was one of about 80 students
aged 14-18 from around the world selected to participate in the ship-based
journey July 29-Aug. 13 alongside more than 30 scientists, historians, artists,
explorers, educators, leaders, innovators and polar experts.
The expedition, organized by Students On Ice, took the students on a ship
journey along the east coast of Baffin Island and to the west side of
Greenland.
“The most memorable thing would be the ice – it dominated the whole
landscape,” said Thorsteinsdottir. “And each bit of it was so different. Some
of it was the deepest blues you could ever imagine. Some of it was like crystal
almost.”
While the Nanaimo student is originally from Iceland, this is the first time
she’s ever seen ice on that scale, especially the icebergs the ship passed,
some of which towered above them.
But even though there was lots of ice around, Thorsteinsdottir learned from
educators and Inuit villagers how there is less of it in the Arctic now than in
the recent past.
The boat went into some fjords in Greenland and Baffin Island that educators
told the students were completely inaccessible not too long ago because they
were so packed with ice.
“We could see marks on the mountains where the ice used to be,” said
Thorsteinsdottir.
During a visit to a 500-person Inuit village on Baffin Island, she learned
that the ice they hunt on is getting thinner and in places can be extremely
dangerous to go onto.
Thorsteinsdottir said it is one thing to listen to people talk about climate
change here in Nanaimo, but quite another to hear about it in the Arctic.
“They’re actually experiencing it and living it,” she said. “It provided me
and so many others with a greater understanding and deeper respect for our
planet. I’m going to really use what I learned to shape how I want to live my
life. I really want to try to make a positive effect on my fellow classmates,
maybe spark some interest in what I learned.”
Her activism will include a presentation to the Dover Bay Eco Club, of which
Thorsteinsdottir is an active member.
Besides the environmental message, a highlight of the trip was seeing polar
bears floating by the ship on large ice sheets.
“They were just there, in the middle of nowhere,” said Thorsteinsdottir. “We
saw them swim from ice sheet to ice sheet.”
The trip also featured glimpses of seals, beluga whales and narwhales.
When visiting a village on Baffin Island, narwhal was one of the
delicacies.
“I can’t say it was the best thing I’d ever tasted,” she said.
For more information about Students On Ice, please visit
http://studentsonice.com.
EMC news - Imagine being so close to a polar bear, it is possible to rub its
big white belly or climbing over sea ice in the middle of the summer.
Imagine learning all about the Arctic in the Arctic.
For three Ottawa students, none of this required their imagination as they had
the opportunity to participate in an Arctic expedition which each of them
credit with changing the way they see life on Earth and the fragile nature of
the environment.
The Students on Ice Arctic Youth Expedition departed from Ottawa on July 30
with 75 students from eight different countries and returned to the Canadian
Museum of Nature on Aug. 13 to take part in a welcome home event.
Although most were a tad tired, many of the students could not find the words
to describe what they had experienced.
"I sometimes think that I live in a bubble and I wanted to lean about what is
beyond the bubble," said Michela Panarella, a student from Orléans. "From this
trip, I have learned just how big this world is and the impact we can have on
it."
The program began in 2001, founded by Geoff Green, a Canadian environmentalist.
Through funding from the Canadian Museum of Nature, there have been 12
expeditions to date.
The museum sent three scientists on the expedition and Margaret Beckel, the
museum's president, also had the opportunity to spend some time with the
students in Iqaluit before they embarked on the sea expedition portion of the
journey.
"Although I did not make it on the ship, my experiences with the students were
incredible," Beckel said.
The museum attributes the partnership with Students on Ice as one of the
examples of the museum's dedication to the Arctic.
"We really truly believe that understanding the Arctic is critical to
understanding our place here," Beckel said.
Green, a veteran of 80 Antarctic expeditions and 36 Arctic expeditions started
the program to offer students a chance to connect with nature, understand the
importance and complexities of the Arctic and have a larger understanding of
their individual roles back in their own communities.
For Crystal Beach siblings Sam and Yasmine Anderson, the experience has left
them almost speechless.
Sam, 16, the student trustee for the Ottawa Carleton District School Board,
will bring what he learned back to his fellow students.
"It will be hard to make people understand what you went through and I don't
want to be like a professor, but it is important to illustrate the awe I felt
and hope it will convey to the students," he said.
Yasmine, 14, said she wants to bring a similar message to younger
students.
Both said the trip has made a huge impact in their lives.
Since the program's inception, it has taken more than 2,000 students, teachers
and scientists to the Arctic, but this year's trip almost was cancelled because
of excessive sea ice in the Iqaluit harbour, preventing access to the
ship.
After a two-day delay, a special request to the Canadian Coast Guard was
granted.
The Coast Guard ferried the group to their ship, and Green said he was almost
brought to tears by the generosity offered to his expedition.
"I don't know what we would have done," Green said.
Once on board, the students experienced an Arctic swim, the opportunity to
visit remote Inuit communities and a voyage across the Davis Strait to visit
and explore Greenland.
A Cool Arctic Experience
The Western Star
Published on August 16, 2012 Gary Kean
City teen’s Students on Ice adventure leaves her
wanting more
CORNER BROOK — Terri Woods-Boone just returned from a trip of a
lifetime to the Arctic and, now that she has seen a real walrus, she knows
what she wants to do next.
The 15-year-old from Corner Brook spent the first two weeks of August
participating in the Students on Ice program, exploring Baffin Island in
the Canadian north and the coastline of Greenland across the Davis
Strait.
"I'd like to get a job here (in Corner Brook) and go on the Antarctic
trip now," said Woods-Boone. "Then I could do a presentation comparing the
Arctic to the Antarctic."
Students on Ice does have an Antarctic program and some of the young
people who just did the Arctic program with Woods-Boone have been
there.
"They said it's really different in the Antarctic," she said. "I really
want to see penguins now."
Woods-Boone will be preparing a slideshow presentation of what she did
see for the Dunfield Park Community Centre in the coming weeks. The centre
nominated her for a scholarship through the Newfoundland and Labrador
Housing Corporation which allowed her to apply to the Students on Ice
program.
Her presentation, including video footage, will be a showcase of amazing
images of breathtaking scenery, awesome wildlife and aboriginal culture.
She'll likely show off the plush walrus she bought, along with other
souvenirs and memories from the experience.
During the expedition, the 80 or so youth from around he world saw
walruses, bowhead whales, polar bears and loads of other interesting
sights. They also learned about climate change and the geography of the
Arctic during daily educational sessions both onshore and aboard the
Akademik Ioffe, the polar expedition ship that took them on the
journey.
"We learned a lot about the climate and how we should stop polluting the
air so much because it is melting the ice and the glaciers," she said.
Ironically, it was excessive sea ice that delayed the group in Iqaluit
an extra two days while they waited for the Canadian Coast Guard vessel Des
Groseilliers to come help them reach the Akademik Ioffe.
That meant a couple of stops on the original itinerary had to be cut out
in order to make up the lost time.
Still, Woods-Boone had a blast getting to know her new friends and
getting acquainted with Arctic cultural traditions like Greenlandic mask
dancing, an entertaining ritual used to educate children about coping with
fear.
The people they encountered along the way were quite friendly, although
no amount of mask dancing was going to convince Woods-Boone to try all of
the local delicacies offered to her.
"In one of the places we went, all the kids were there waiting to meet
us on the deck as soon as we arrived," she said. "They had this party
planned and they wanted me to try whale, but I didn't."
She did try breast meat from some Arctic bird she couldn't remember the
name of.
Some of the group, though not Woods-Boone, even participated in a swim
in the Arctic Ocean.
"Some of them only got out as far as their ankles because it was so
cold, but some of them actually went swimming," she said.
For one of the final workshops she took in, Woods-Boone chose to
participate in one that focused on the Arctic Children and Youth
Foundation. They discussed the creation of a website that would offer up
ideas about how to make schools in the Arctic region better.
All of the youth took part in the trip for their own personal reasons.
One girl read a poem about a troubled youth and, after she had finished,
revealed that she was the subject of the poem.
After hearing the poem, Woods-Boone now wants to create a website aimed
at helping young people in similar situations.
"I am going to contact her and see if I can use her poem as the main
message on the website," she said.
For a daily account, including photos and videos, of the Students on Ice
expedition, check out the website www.studentsonice.com.
La jeune Gatinoise Marine
Poirier-Defoy a pu voir de nombreux icebergs dans le fjord Sunneshine,
à l'île de Baffin.
Philippe Orfali Le Droit (Ottawa/Gatineau) Publié le 14 août 2012 à 07h44
Sept ours polaires, quelques phoques et une
intervention inespérée de la Garde côtière canadienne plus tard, un
groupe de 75 élèves du Canada et d'ailleurs se sont dit adieu, hier, au
terme d'un périple de plus de deux semaines dans l'Arctique
canadien.
Chaque année, Students on Ice, un organisme canadien établi dans
les bureaux scientifiques du Musée de la nature, sur le chemin Pink
à Gatineau, permet à quelques dizaines d'élèves du secondaire de
partir à la découverte de l'Arctique canadien. L'objectif est
double: apprendre à mieux connaître le Grand Nord et l'impact des
changements climatiques, ainsi que se familiariser avec la culture
inuite.
Pour la cohorte de cette année, c'était l'heure des au revoir,
hier, après deux semaines bien chargées. «Je dis souvent que la
flexibilité est la clef, explique Geoff Green, le fondateur de
Students on Ice. Cette année, ça a été poussé à l'extrême.»
Partis d'Ottawa le 30juillet, les jeunes et l'équipage devaient
à l'origine passer un jour à Iqaluit avant de monter à bord du
navire de Students on Ice, venu les chercher dans la baie de
Frobisher. Mais la glace présente en quantité inhabituelle pour un
mois d'août a retardé d'un, puis de deux jours le départ de
l'expédition. «Les gens d'Iqaluit nous disaient qu'ils n'avaient
jamais vu ça de leur vie», explique M.Green.
«On a découvert Iqaluit de fond en comble pendant ces deux
jours», lance Marine Poirier-Defoy, 15 ans, originaire de
Gatineau.
«Heureusement, après avoir pensé à des hélicoptères ou à
d'autres options, c'est finalement la garde côtière qui est venue
nous aider», explique l'élève du Collège Saint-Joseph.
L'intervention de la Garde côtière et de leur brise-glace s'est
révélée salutaire, a souligné Geoff Green, hier.
Plus de détails dans LeDroit du 14 août 2012 ou sur
ledroitsurmonordi.ca
Written by Edwin Dewaal
Wednesday, August 8
SaskatoonHomepage.ca
40 high school students on an Arctic expedition, including two students from
Saskatoon encountered something that only happens once every 30 years in an
Arctic summer.
An ice jam from Frobisher Bay prevented the group from boarding their ship,
stranding them in Iqaluit. The Canadian Coast Guard was called in to take the
students and expedition leaders to their ship.
Saskatoon high school student, Alana Krug-MacLeod says other than the hiccup
on Friday, they've experienced amazing weather. Krug-MacLeod and another
Saskatoon high school student, Danno Peters are doing some extracurricular
activities while on the trip.
The two are collecting soil samples for the Canadian Light Source
Synchrotron, for research on acid rain and its effects in Canada's north.
By Peter
Henderson August 5, 2012 10:01 PM Ottawa
Citizen
OTTAWA — An
Arctic expedition for students organized by a Gatineau non-profit is on its
way out to sea after a “miracle” intervention by the Canadian Coast Guard
on Friday.
More than 100
students, teachers and guides had planned to board their educational ship
in Iqaluit on Aug. 1, but couldn’t because the harbour became choked with
ice from Frobisher Bay.
After days of
waiting, the Coast Guard ship Des Groseilliers agreed to help.
Students On
Ice operations manager Reina Lahtinen said a Coast Guard barge was able to
navigate between the ice and bring the students to the Des Groseilliers
late Friday.
The students
were then transferred ship-to-ship in groups on Zodiac rafts to their own
vessel, which was waiting in another part of the bay that was
ice-free.
Lahtinen said
the operation to get the students from the shore and onto their own ship
took about three hours.
“We were
collectively holding our breath,” said Mark Brooks, the communications
manager for Students on Ice. “We didn’t know if it was going to happen, if
they were going to be successful. It was really a last resort. If this
didn’t work, the whole expedition could have been in peril.”
In a blog
post, expedition leader Geoff Green thanked the Coast Guard and said it
took “a bit of a miracle” to get the expedition moving.
Brooks said
the amount of ice in Iqaluit was unusual for this time of year and had been
caused by unusual winds and currents.
Students On
Ice is an educational organization that leads expeditions for high school
and university students to the Arctic and Antarctic. The expeditions focus
on issues of culture, environment and politics of the polar
regions.
Most of the
students on the two-week trip are Canadian, including three from Ottawa,
Brooks said, although some are from other countries. Without help from the
Coast Guard, he said, some of them would have had to return to homes as far
away as Russia and India.
Keith
Ashfield, Minister of Fisheries and Oceans, and Leona Aglukkaq, Minister of
Canadian Northern Economic Development Agency, issued a statement Saturday
congratulating the Coast Guard for the successful operation.
The statement
noted the North could be a dangerous and unpredictable place with extreme
weather and ice conditions that could make travel treacherous.
“We are so
pleased that the Canadian Coast Guard could assist these stranded students
in getting safely to their research vessel,” the joint statement
read.
“People in the
North are well-served by Canada’s Coast Guard who go above and beyond the
call of duty to help with humanitarian incidents such as this.”
Lahtinen said
the group had been in Iqaluit after flying from Ottawa on July 30. They had
completed pre-expedition programs while staying in the student residences
at Arctic College, but, because of the delays, had a lot of extra time to
fill.
Luckily,
Lahtinen said, community members in Iqaluit stepped forward to provide
extra presentations and entertainment.
“It really
added to the experience of these students. They got to spend an extra
couple of days in Iqaluit and to really have a sense of what it’s like to
live in the north and befriend these people in the community and other
youth in Iqaluit,” she said.
Lahtinen said
the ice even provided some entertainment.
“When the
tides were out, the students were able to walk out into Frobisher Bay and
walk amongst the bergy bits and the pieces of iceberg, so we literally had
students walking on ice.”
The group will
eventually sail to Greenland, where they will board a flight back to
Canada.
Alex
Taylor, a guide with "Students on Ice" celebrates during a transfer
in Iqaluit, Nunavut. The Canadian Coast Guard has helped an Arctic
expedition called "Students on Ice" get on its way after the
students ended up with a lot more ice than anticipated.Over 100
students, teachers and guides had planned to board their
educational ship in Iqaluit on August 1, but couldn't because the
harbour was choked with ice from Frobisher Bay. THE CANADIAN
PRESS/HO-Students On Ice
IQALUIT,
Nunavut - The Canadian Coast Guard helped an Arctic expedition called
"Students on Ice" get on its way this weekend after the students ended up
with a lot more ice than anticipated.
Over 100
students, teachers and guides had planned to board their educational ship
in Iqaluit on August 1, but couldn't because the harbour was choked with
ice from Frobisher Bay.
After days of
waiting, the Coast Guard ship Des Groseilliers agreed to help.
Students On
Ice operations manager Reina Lahtinen said a Coast Guard barge was able to
navigate between the ice and bring the students to the Des Groseilliers
late Friday.
The students
were then transferred ship-to-ship in groups on Zodiac rafts to their own
vessel, which was waiting outside in a part of the bay that was
ice-free.
"We were lucky
last night because the tides were high because it was a full moon, and
winds were low," Lahtinen said Saturday, noting that the transfer was
tricky.
"Obviously in
those conditions, there is some risk," she explained. "We didn't really
have any other options at that point."
Lahtinen said
the amount of ice in Iqaluit is unusual for this time of year, and is due
to unusual winds and currents.
Students On
Ice is a Gatineau, Que.-based educational organization that leads
expeditions for high school and university students to the Arctic and
Antarctic. The expeditions focus on issues of culture, environment,
politics of the polar regions.
Most of the
students on the two-week trip are Canadian, Lahtinen said, although some
are from other countries.
Lahtinen said
the operation to get them from the shore and onto their own ship took about
three hours.
Keith
Ashfield, Minister of Fisheries and Oceans, and Leona Aglukkaq, Minister of
Canadian Northern Economic Development Agency, issued a statement Saturday
congratulating the Coast Guard for the successful operation.
The statement
noted the North can be a dangerous and unpredictable place with extreme
weather and ice conditions that can make travel treacherous.
"We are so
pleased that the Canadian Coast Guard could assist these stranded students
in getting safely to their research vessel," the joint statement
read.
"People in the
North are well-served by Canada's Coast Guard who go above and beyond the
call of duty to help with humanitarian incidents such as this."
Lahtinen said
the group had been in Iqaluit after flying from Ottawa on July 30. They had
completed their planned pre-expedition programs while staying in the
student residences at Arctic College, but due to the delays had a lot of
extra time to fill.
Luckily,
Lahtinen said, many community members in Iqaluit stepped forward to provide
extra presentations and entertainment.
"It really
added to the experience of these students. They got to spend an extra
couple of days in Iqaluit and to really have a sense of what it's like to
live in the north and befriend these people in the community and other
youth in Iqaluit," Lahtinen said.
Lahtinen said
the ice itself even provided some entertainment.
"When the
tides were out, the students were able to walk out into Frobisher Bay and
walk amongst the bergy bits and the pieces of iceberg. So we literally had
students walking on ice."
The group will
eventually sail to Greenland where they will board a flight back to
Canada.
Joint Press Release from the Ministers of Fisheries and Oceans, Health, and
the Canadian Northern Economic Development Agency
Saturday, August 4, 2012
At 12:50 am August 4 2012 in Frobisher Bay Nunavut, CCGS Des
Groseilliers successfully completed the safe transfer of 76 students and 40
educators with the Students on Ice Program, to the passenger vessel MV
Akademik Ioffe.
This afternoon, The Honourable Keith Ashfield, Minister of Fisheries and
Oceans, and the Honourable Leona Aglukkaq, Minister of Canadian
Northern Economic Development Agency and Minister of Health released
the following statement:
"We are so pleased that the Canadian Coast Guard could assist these
stranded students in getting safely to their research vessel.
"Canada's North can be a dangerous and unpredictable place with extreme
weather and ice conditions that can make travel very treacherous.
"People in the North are well-served by Canada's Coast Guard who go above
and beyond the call of duty to help with humanitarian incidents such as
this."
Coast Guard help students in ice-bound Iqaluit
The Canadian Press Published Sunday, Aug. 5, 2012 9:02AM EDT
A day in the life of a student on ice
Posted by Samia Madwar on Thursday,
August 02, 2012
Greetings from Iqaluit!
As an online editor, I'm used to shifting deadlines and last-minute projects
that need to be done, finished, perfectly polished and out the door
by...yesterday. It's those surprise tasks that often end up being the most
interesting.
One day this past spring for example, I was at my cubicle minding my own
business when our managing editor sauntered in and asked me ever so casually
whether I had any plans for August. I told him I did not.
He then asked whether I wanted to go to the Arctic. He must have meant it as a
rhetorical question, because he and everyone I work with know of my interest
(some might call it an obsession) in the polar regions. Suppressing a delighted
squeal, I told him I did.
It turns out my assignment was to tell the Students on Ice Arctic story. The
program, which was founded by educator Geoff Green 12 years ago, takes high school age
students to the Arctic and Antarctic every year to learn about the history,
culture, science, wildlife and political issues that colour the polar
regions.
That's what brought me to the computer station in a little lounge in
Iqaluit's Nunavut Arctic College. Assembled on one half of what used to be a
ping pong table are 10 tiny laptops available for students--more than 70
hailing from Canada, the U.S., Russia, Germany, India, Iceland and Monaco--and
staff for blogging. I'm feeling a little bit lost without my own laptop and
smartphone, but I'll have to get used to life without my usual electronic
entourage for the next two weeks. Instead of scanning news websites and Twitter
feeds to read every little snippet about the Arctic that I can get my eyes on,
I get to live it, see it, hear it and explore it along with scientists,
videographers, artists, politicians as well as dozens of eager teens, each with
a remarkably insightful perspective into how their worlds are connected. I'll
be traveling with them on board the Akademik Ioffe, a Finnish-built,
Russian-run research vessel along the coast of Baffin Island and across Davis
Strait to Greenland.
One of Students on Ice's mantras, Geoff explained to us on our first day, is
that flexibility is key. Our itinerary was obsolete even before we left Ottawa,
and our schedule of activities for Monday did not go as planned. That doesn't
bother me; having to be flexible just makes life more interesting. Just like
that time I was sitting in my cubicle, minding my own business...
Nunavut Arctic College
Students on Ice set to launch Arctic Expedition 2012
Wednesday, 01 August 2012 22:00
‘A Voyage of Discovery and
Transformation’
Gatineau, Quebec - July 27 2012 – As the Arctic warms
and polar sea ice continues to melt at unprecedented rates, 75
international high school students and a team of inspiring leaders are
preparing to set sail on the latest Students on Ice Arctic
expedition: ‘A Voyage of Discovery and Transformation’.
Launching from Iqaluit, the ship- and land-based journey will explore the
eastern Canadian Arctic and western Greenland between July 29 and August 13,
2012. The expedition will involve Canadian and international students, aged
14-18, including over 30 Inuit youth from across Canada’s North. The students
will join a team of 35 world-class scientists, historians, artists, explorers,
educators, innovators, polar experts and Aboriginal Elders on a
once-in-a-lifetime journey that will expand the students’ knowledge of the
circumpolar world and give them a new global perspective on the planet, its
wonders, and its present and future challenges.
Students on the expedition come from countries around the world including
India, Russia, Germany, Monaco, Belize, Greenland and the United States.
Through the generosity of partner organizations, almost all have been awarded
scholarships to participate in what is sure to be a transformational,
life-changing experience.
Joining the Students on Ice team this year will be Mary
Simon, Inuit leader and former president of Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami;
Madeleine Redfern, mayor of Iqaluit; and Bill “Father
Goose” Lishman, the renowned artist, inventor and pioneer. The
president and CEO of the Canadian Museum of Nature, Meg
Beckel, will also be joining the expedition along with several CMN
scientists.
The themes of the 2012 Arctic Expedition are Interconnection, Discovery
and Transformation and every day on board the ice-class expedition
vessel will be different. The approach to expedition learning will weave
together exciting shore landings, interpretive hikes, community visits, Zodiac
cruises and ship-based exploration. Expedition activities will include
extraordinary wildlife encounters, educational day excursions, visits to remote
Arctic communities and archeological sites, and opportunities to acquire
first-hand knowledge and insight into the dynamics of climate change.
Participants will explore how human and natural systems are inextricably
connected and how personal and societal transformation can take place.
“There has never been a more important time to expose the youth of Canada and
the world to the Arctic,” said Geoff Green, the founder and president of
Students on Ice. “This region will be front and centre in the coming years in
terms of its global importance to a wide range of issues from climate change to
sustainable development. For Canadian youth in particular, this expedition
represents an opportunity to connect with our emerging identity as an Arctic
nation.”
Students are available for interviews in advance of the expedition and, if
desired, Students on Ice can arrange interviews from the ship while the
expedition is underway. The expedition website is www.studentsonice.com/arctic2012.
“You’re now ambassadors and will be when
you go home"
By Samantha Dawson
Nunatsiaq News
July 31, 2012
Kelvin Ivalutanar and Lorane Siusangark from Repulse Bay, shown here in
Iqaluit on July 30, are among 25 youth from Canada's Inuit regions who are
going on the Students on Ice a 12-day educational cruise. (PHOTO BY
SAMANTHA DAWSON)
Youth participating in the 2012 Students on Ice trip line up to introduce
themselves to the group July 30 at the Ukkivik residence in Iqaluit. (PHOTO
BY SAMANTHA DAWSON)
Johnny Issaluk demonstrates the head pull with a volunteer from the
Students on Ice staff July 30, during a meet and greet at the Ukkivik
residence with the students going on a 12-day educational cruise to
Greenland. (PHOTO BY SAMANTHA DAWSON)
On Aug. 1, 25 young people from Canada’s Inuit regions, along with 50 other
students from around the world, will sail from Iqaluit to view icebergs and
wildlife before heading from Qikiqtarjuaq to western Greenland.
That’s the plan for their 12-day educational cruise with the organization,
Students on Ice.
During the journey, they’ll also explore the tundra during land trips and
learn about whales, seals, walrus, caribou, Arctic hare, and climate
change.
The youth, aged 14 to 18, will be accompanied by 43 Students on Ice staff
members, who include scientists, aboriginal elders, historians, artists,
writers, innovators, leaders and polar experts, as well as Iqaluit Mayor
Madeleine Redfern and Mary Simon, the former president of Inuit Tapiriit
Kanatami.
After setting off from Iqaluit, the first scheduled stop is at the Savage
Islands near the southeastern tip of Baffin Island.
In Iqaluit on July 30 before the Students on Ice departure, Kelvin
Ivalutanar, 16, of Repulse Bay, told Nunatsiaq News he’s looking
forward to learning more about the Arctic environment and wildlife.
Ivalunatar said his teacher first suggested he might be interested in the
trip, and so he applied to join the group, which offers scholarships to many
participants.
His family is now “very happy” that he was accepted for the trip.
“I’m very excited to meet a lot of people and to make new friends,”
Ivalunatar said of the students from all over Canada, the United States, India,
Iceland, Germany and northern Russia.
Activities will include interpretive hikes, community visits, wildlife
encounters, visits to Arctic communities and archeological sites, and a chance
to acquire first-hand knowledge and insight into climate change.
“You’re now ambassadors and will be when you go home,” Students on Ice
president and founder Geoff Green told the youth, who arrived in Iqaluit July
30.
After introductions, Nunavut’s Johnny Issaluk gave a demonstration of
traditional Inuit games.
“You’ll get friends from all over the world that will go on for a lifetime,”
said Issaluk, adding, “I’m very happy you’re going and I wish I could go with
you.”
Along for the trip as an educator, scientist David Gray plans to teach the
kids about Arctic mammals such as muskox, Arctic hare and caribou in
presentations on the ship.
An on-the-land workshop called “Skin and Bones” will show how every part of
an animal can be used and not wasted.
Gray, who was been on eight other Students on Ice trips, said he’s
interested in general ecology and how everything in nature “fits together.”
“The goal for me is to teach people who had either no Arctic experience or a
different kind of Arctic experience in a different place, to teach them what’s
there, what it means to us as humans, what it means to the future of us as
humans and just try to get them thinking about the whole network of life,” Gray
said.
The combination of youth from different cultures is a good thing, he
said.
“To the kids from the United States or California or Germany it’s all new.
It’s a combination of teaching the whole thing to kids who have never
experienced anything, incorporating the knowledge that the local kids have and
helping it all come together.”
Fifteen-year-old Laura Ocean McLeod of Aklavik, this year’s ITK youth
ambassador, also an avid photographer and camper, said “things are rapidly
changing in the world, and we feel the effects of it up in the Arctic.”
“It’s necessary for me to learn about the place I live. I want to
effectively communicate to the people of Aklavik and population of the Beaufort
Delta that we can and do make a difference,” she told Nunatsiaq
News.
Since 2000, more than 1,800 high school and university students from 40
countries have visited the polar regions with the Students on Ice program.
The students will be keeping daily blog journals and journalists on the ship
will be posting content on the Students on Ice website.
Isabella Thorsteinsdottir hopes to study endangered species in the Arctic
one day.
The Dover Bay Secondary School student is on her first trip to that region
of the world this summer with the Students on Ice Youth Expedition 2012.
Thorsteinsdottir, 15, is one of about 80 students aged 14-18 from around the
world selected to participate in the ship-based journey with 35 scientists,
historians, artists, explorers, educators, leaders, innovators and polar
experts from July 29 to Aug. 13.
She is also one of five female students to get a Leacross Foundation
scholarship to pay for the trip.
The excursion educates students about environmental issues facing the Arctic
and they will participate in shore landings, interpretive hikes, community
visits, Zodiac cruises, workshops and research activities as the ship travels
along the east coast of Baffin Island and to the west side of Greenland.
“They want us to make connections between natural systems and humans and
reflect on those experiences we have,” said Thorsteinsdottir, who moved to
Nanaimo from Iceland five years ago.
“Since I came from Iceland, I’m really connected to the north.”
Thorsteinsdottir is a member of the Dover Bay Eco Club, the school’s
outdoors club and GAIA Activism, a global network of youth working to ensure a
sustainable future.
She’s on the trip to further her understanding of environmental issues, to
experience the spectacular natural scenery – in her spare time, she does a lot
of hiking and just returned from a five-day trip to Nootka Island with the
school’s outdoors club – and to learn as much as she can from the experts and
other students on the trip.
“I think it will teach us a lot about independence and leading people,” said
Thorsteinsdottir. “I’m hoping to learn more about planning and preparation,
talking to people and leading, for example, the eco club.”
She learned about the Arctic opportunity through another eco club member,
Cassandra Elphinstone, who heads to the University of B.C. in the fall.
Elphinstone went on the trip last year and another former Dover Bay student,
Carson Hardy, went the year before.
Thorsteinsdottir wants to study medical sciences and become a veterinarian,
which combines her love of biology and animals.
“I love animals – I have some horses and a couple dogs,” she said. “I really
hope to be able to travel to remote places and do research for endangered
species. I’m definitely going to try to continue my environmental
activism.”
Clare Glassco, Students on Ice participant coordinator, said there were
about 55 applications for the five Leacross Foundation scholarships offered
this year and Thorsteinsdottir was picked for her leadership potential, among
other things.
“Her communication skills are phenomenal,” she said. “In her application
form, she was hugely articulate, which is even more amazing given English is
her second language.”
For more information about the trip, please go to
www.studentsonice.com/arctic2012.
Click the link below to read a
timely and important article from the Huffington Post. Dramatic changes are
taking place in the Arctic and this latest development only highlights the
importance of raising awareness about the region as we set off on our
Arctic adventure!
NASA CAPTION: Extent of surface melt over Greenland’s ice sheet on July 8
(left) and July 12 (right).
Unprecedented melting of Greenland's ice sheet this month has stunned NASA
scientists and has highlighted broader concerns that the region is losing a
remarkable amount of ice overall.
According to a NASA press release, about half of Greenland's surface ice sheet
naturally melts during an average summer. But the data from three independent
satellites this July, analyzed by NASA and university scientists, showed that
in less than a week, the amount of thawed ice sheet surface skyrocketed from 40
percent to 97 percent.
Peterborough student heading north on ship-based tour that will
visit Iqaluit, Baffin Island, Greenland
by Sarah Frank
Kawartha Media Group
July 27, 2012
Emma Arsenault. On July 29, Emma Arsenault, 17, is
joining other young people heading north with Students on Ice Arctic
Expedition. Emma wants to become a marine biologist and feels this trip
would give her some experience. Lance Anderson/This Week
(PETERBOROUGH) Emma Arsenault is packing up her
long-johns.
This summer, the Peterborough teen will leave her computer and cell phone
behind to tour the Canada's most northern regions.
Trip, which runs approximately two weeks will take participants to Iqaluit,
Baffin Island and Greenland to explore the rugged landscapes and arctic
wildlife, an aspect of the country's culture many Canadians will only see from
their television.
The Students on Ice Expedition, a ship-based journey which hosts
approximately 80 international high school students, aims to provide
adventurers with a new perspective on the planet.
A team of 35 scientists, aboriginal elders, historians, artists and polar
experts are also along for the ride.
Ms Arsenault, a Grade 11 students at St. Peter's Secondary School in
Peterborough, is an aspiring marine biologist, who originally read about the
trip in a newspaper.
She signed up, filled out an application detailing why she wanted the chance
to explore the north and was happy to find she was accepted a short while
later.
In preparation for her trip she's put in long hours at a local retail store,
saving money to cover the $10,000 price tag for the trip.
Cost aside, it's an opportunity she's not passing up, she says.
"I think it's going to be amazing," she says. "I want to see that
environment while it's still here."
Of the many reasons she's counting down the days until her July 29
departure, wildlife encounters, which include whales, seals, polar bears and
caribou, to name a few, are among the top contenders.
Throughout the excursion, which officially begins in Ottawa, the group will
travel to Nunavut to explore and hike through Iqaluit before sting sail aboard
the Academic loofa vessel. In the days that follow the group will explore
various islands, lower zodiac boats for water exploration and visit Greenland,
before heading back to Ottawa.
"Im excited for everything they have planned for us, I'm really into
hiking," says Ms Arsenault, noting she's not put off by cooler temperatures.
"They've told us we're going to encounter a huge temperature range throughout
the trip so layering clothing is key. We're allowed one 70-pound suitcase so I
need to see how much I can actually bring."
During the trip there are no cell phones, iPods or lap tops, leaving
participants completely "unplugged" and focused on one thing: the atmosphere
around them.
Ms Arsenault says the trip organizers do run a live website with posted
photos and journal entries from participants, but other than the site, there's
no contact with home.
"I think my parents will be a little nervous waiting back here," says Ms
Arsenault, who doesn't mind leaving her cell phone behind. "I'm excited for
that part. They just want to stress that we're there for the environment and
they don't want anything getting in the way of that."
The trip runs from July 29 to August 13. For more information on Students on
Ice Polar Education visit www.studentsonice.com
July 27 2012
Fisheries and Marine Institute of Memorial University
Switching career paths in his early thirties is something Stephen Sheppard
did not anticipate when he began working ten years ago as a youth pastor at a
Pentecostal Church in St. Anthony, NL.
The husband and father of two is now a second year Marine Environment
Technology student at the Fisheries and Marine Institute (MI) of Memorial
University of Newfoundland.
Although he is the first to admit the level of difficulty in raising a
family and going back to school as a mature student, Sheppard feels this was
the best decision he has made.
"Enrolling at MI was a no-brainer. It is close to home and offered the best
program in the field I wanted to study," said Sheppard.
As part of the Marine Environmental program, Sheppard is currently on a work
term with Environment Canada in his hometown of Grand Falls- Windsor, NL where
he spends up to ten days on a boat.
This summer, he will embark on The Students on Ice Arctic Youth Expedition
2012 as part of a world-class team of 35 scientists, historians, artists,
explorers, educators, leaders, innovators and polar experts.
MI is sponsoring Sheppard on this expedition where he will be a
leader/chaperone to 80 international high school students, 14 to 18 years
old.
Sheppard explained, "This expedition is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to
explore the Arctic. I am particularly interested in seeing how climate change
is affecting the Arctic and, in turn, the indigenous population in the way they
hunt and go about their daily lives."
The ship and land-based journey will explore the eastern Canadian Arctic and
western Greenland between July 29 and August 13, 2012. This expedition
will help students gain a greater understanding and respect for the planet
while allowing them to develop the knowledge, skills, perspectives and
practices to become Arctic ambassadors and environmentally responsible
citizens.
As an up and coming marine environmental technologist, Sheppard advocates
our responsibility to preserve the planet and believes it is imperative for
young people to connect with the environment if there is going to be a
sustained response to the challenges of climate change.
Being a nature enthusiast is not his only asset, Sheppard is also an
accomplished photographer; rarely seen without his camera and this expedition
will be no exception.
"As a photographer, the main highlight of this expedition, for me, is being
able to capture the Arctic and the effects of climate change first-hand,"
explained Sheppard.
The voyage will provide students and expedition team members with a powerful
cross-cultural experience. Expedition activities will include extraordinary
wildlife encounters, educational day excursions, visits to remote Arctic
communities and archaeological sites and opportunities to acquire first-hand
knowledge and insight into the dynamics of climate change.
*****
You can follow the Students on Ice Arctic Youth Expedition 2012 online
between July 29th and August 13th, 2012. Experience the
various educational elements of the expedition through daily journal entries,
photos and videos from student participants and other expedition team
members.
Tuesday, July, 24, 2012 Madelaine Brown FOR BRANT NEWS
Submitted photo
Madelaine Brown
Opportunities only come every so often and, when they do, we must embrace
them.
I learned this valuable lesson from a man who lived down the street from me
by the name of Gord Paynter.
We were on some levels the same. We both shared humour, wit and dealing with
medical complications.
One night, my family and I were in New York City eating in Little Italy when
we spotted Gord and his wife walking down the street. We called out to them,
taking the risk of looking like idiots if they didn’t hear us.
“Hey! People from Elm Street in Brantford!”
They did hear us and walked over to chat. We talked about the sheer luck of
seeing each other, not only many kilometres from home, but in a city of
millions of people.
When I look back on this experience, I think that it must have been a sign –
a sign that Gord was someone who I should get to know and foster a relationship
with.
I knew that Gord was a great man and someone who I wanted to get to know
better, but I procrastinated writing him a letter or even walking down the
street and talking with him.
Maybe it would have just been for one afternoon – one afternoon does not
seem like that much time – but it will never be an afternoon I can have. Gord
passed away in April.
Now anytime there is an opportunity, I will be the one to take it.
This summer, in the year I will be going into high school, I have been
presented the chance to go on an Arctic expedition to Nunavut and Greenland for
two weeks. This has been made possible by the generous funding of an
organization called The Leacross Foundation, which is devoted to educating
women and furthering their lives through knowledge.
Applying for such a large scholarship was nerve racking and time consuming,
but it will pay off when I set sail on July 29 until Aug. 12.
I will be travelling with 80 international high school students on a working
vessel with 35 polar scientists, native elders, writers, photographers and
musicians.
The reason I am going is because I want to see the Arctic for myself and I
want to learn more about the environmental impacts that each of us make. While
in the Arctic, I will be visiting many interesting places and doing interesting
things.
I will be learning about the poles from a global perspective. While I am
there, I will leave footprints and take knowledge (and photos). It should be a
wild ride and I am glad that I can share it with my hometown through a column
in the Brant News. Flat Gord will be joining me on my adventure and we will be
taking lots of pictures.
You can follow the expedition through my upcoming articles.
Ottawa Ontario - Thursday, July 26, 2012 – Laura Ocean McLeod of Aklavik, is
this year’s ITK Ambassador for the Students on Ice 2012 Expedition, setting
sail on a 12-day voyage to the eastern Canadian Arctic and western Greenland on
August 1, 2012.
For a third year in a row, ITK is sponsoring a student to participate on the
Students on Ice expedition. “Investment in the Arctic environment requires an
investment in our youth and their education,” said ITK President Terry Audla.
“The Inuvialuit region experiences first hand, the effects of a changing
environment, and the pressures of resource development projects. We are pleased
to support Laura Ocean McLeod’s participation on this exciting journey.”
“Things are rapidly changing in the world, and we feel the effects of it up
in the Arctic,” said Laura Ocean McLeod, ITK’s Students on Ice Ambassador.
“It’s necessary for me to learn about the place I live. I want to effectively
communicate to the people of Aklavik and population of the Beaufort Delta that
we can and do make a difference.”
“The Arctic is the greatest classroom on Earth without walls!” said Geoff
Green, the founder and president of Students on Ice. “This journey will expand
the students' knowledge of the circumpolar world and give them a new global
perspective on the planet, its wonders, and its present and future
challenges.”
An award-winning organization, Students on Ice is offering unique
educational expeditions to the Antarctic and the Arctic, providing students,
educators and scientists from around the world with inspiring educational
opportunities and, in doing so, helping to foster a new understanding and
respect for the planet.
ITK’s Arctic Ambassador, Laura Ocean McLeod was chosen by ITK from
submissions to SOI from Inuit students across Inuit Nunangat. The 15-year old
student at Moss Kerr High School is an avid photographer and camper. Follow her
on the journey on the ITK Facebook page and the Students on Ice website
www.studentsonice.com
Last year we followed
Joey as he trail blazed his way through the Arctic and this year we are
passing the torch off to Marck. Get the details on this youth leader then
follow along on his adventure as he
guest blogs on EarthRangers.com.
Marck Mercado is an active 18 year old from Markham, Ontario. His passion
for the environment is expressed through his work as the 2011-2012 president of
the
Youth Environmental Network of York Region (YENYR). YENYR is a non-profit,
youth-led organization dedicated to empowering students with the inspiration,
resources, and network to become environmentally aware and active in their
communities. Recently, they successfully held their first ever Eco Youth Forum
in the Rouge Park to encourage youth to become more connected with nature. This
coming year, YENYR will be working on an even larger project that will connect
both the high schools and elementary schools of York Region in a way where
everyone can collaborate as stewards of the environment. Marck’s involvement in
the community also includes supporting education in impoverished communities
with Turn the Page, providing students volunteer opportunities with Youth
Volunteer Markham, and acting as a youth voice for the Markham Mayor’s Youth
Task Force.
Marck believes that the youth community has great potential in creating
positive impacts for the world. By participating on this expedition, Marck
plans to continue his goal of inspiring other youth to take an interest and
action towards environmental issues, including how the crisis of climate change
has affected the Arctic. He hopes that his stories and messages will be a
powerful tool of inspiration that will spread as a ripple effect of action.
Student expeditioners from Saskatchewan, Daniel (Danno) Peters and Alana
Krug-MacLeod were recently featured in a story by Global Evening News in
Saskatoon. Click the video player below to view the program. The segment on
Students on Ice starts at 4:18. Way to go Danno and Alana!
Heading north is taking on a whole new meaning for three Ottawa teens.
Yasmin and Samuel Anderson (sister and brother) and Michela Panarella are part
of a group of 75 students from around the world, along with a world-class team
of leaders, about to set sail on the latest Students on Ice
Arctic expedition, called A Voyage of Discovery and
Transformation.
It’s the trip of a lifetime, involving Canadian and international students
aged 14-18. Participants hail from India, Russia, Germany, Monaco, Belize,
Greenland and the United States and their numbers include over 30 Inuit youth
from across Canada's North. Almost all have been awarded scholarships to
participate. The youngsters are joining a team of 35 top scientists,
historians, artists, explorers, educators, polar experts and Aboriginal Elders
for an experience that will open their eyes to the circumpolar world and give
them a new global perspective on the planet, its wonders, and its present
and future challenges.
Launching from Iqaluit, the ship-and land-based excursion will explore
the eastern Canadian Arctic and western Greenland between July 29 and
August 13. The word “epic” actually fits the scenario. High-profile leaders
involved include Meg Beckel, president and CEO of the Canadian Museum of Nature
(CMN). She will be joining the expedition along with several CMN
scientists. Wildlife encounters, educational excursions and visits to
remote Arctic communities and archeological sites are all on the agenda. The
young leaders of tomorrow will acquire first-hand knowledge and insight into
the dynamics of climate change.
"There has never been a more important time to expose the youth of
Canada and the world to the Arctic," said Geoff Green, the founder and
president of Students on Ice. "This region will be front and centre in the
coming years in terms of its global importance to a wide range of issues
from climate change to sustainable development. For Canadian youth in
particular, this expedition represents an opportunity to connect with our
emerging identity as an Arctic nation."
by Andrew Miner (Student
participant on Arctic 2012 Expedition) East Greenwich Patch July 6, 2012
For the first time in 16 years I won’t be
with my grandfather on his birthday in late July. I will be in the Arctic with
a program called Students On Ice (SOI). Ironically it was my grandfather
who first taught me about the Arctic region and the North Pole.
When I was a little boy he would read me chapters from one of his favorite
books, The Arctic
Grail, as a bedtime story – chapters about the British explorations to
find the Northwest
Passage and the controversial Cook and Peary expeditions in which both
men claimed to have made the voyage to the geographic North Pole first. One,
nicknamed the ”Prince of Liars,” was a medical doctor who was later convicted
on mail fraud charges (he was subsequently granted a full pardon by FDR). The
other, who had studied Inuit survival techniques and dressed in native fashion
on his expedition, was known as “unpleasant” and even “untrustworthy” by some.
After finishing the chapters about these men, my grandfather asked me, “Well,
do you think one of them is the greatest explorer of his time or are they both
career con men?” I sat there wide-eyed in my footed pajamas sipping my juice
box in silence. Back then I thought the North Pole was all snowdrifts and
Santa’s village, not an ocean surrounded by ice. I was 6.
A civil engineer by trade, my grandfather later taught me about climate
change, global warming, and the melting polar ice. He even taught me about the
causes of local beach closings and what we could do as citizens to keep our
water clean. At nearly 85, his mind is sharp and his opinions are well
formed.
This knowledge was exponentially compounded by my biology teacher and EGHS
Science Department chair, Mr. Nicholas Rath, who pointed me towards this
opportunity and supported my application with a letter of recommendation.
A second letter needed from a community member was furnished by Mrs. Elizabeth
McNamara, editor of the East Greenwich Patch, who has graciously allowed me to
blog for the Patch this year and who will allow me to chronicle my journey to
the Arctic here.
When I think about the trip I am sure of only two things: I will be
surprised by what I see and learn and I will return home determined to raise
the funds needed to send another EGHS student next summer. This trip is
expensive and has only 80 spots for students from all over the globe. Nearly 80
percent of students receive some type of funding or grant money. Most of us
would be unable to travel on this expedition without these funds, yet they are
hard to come by and highly coveted. The committed scientists, explorers,
activists, environmentalists, and educators of SOI believe that the youth voice
can be a powerful motivator for change. They stress that expeditions into the
natural world inspire young people to advocate for our planet, the
preservations of its resources, and the protection of its diverse species.
That’s why they take students to the polar regions despite the distance and
expense. More of those students need to come from EGHS.
When I broke the news to my grandfather that I would be missing from his
85th birthday celebration to visit the Arctic, he smiled. At almost
85, he knows that each birthday is precious, but I think his biggest regret is
that at age 16, I am still too young to buy him a bottle of his favorite vodka
for a birthday present from the Duty Free shop at the airport. He did give me
some parting advice, though. “You’ll be on top of the world up there but
be careful. You’ll be on some very thin ice.” He also gave me a parting gift.
Something to take with me.
So I depart for the Arctic in late July. I fly to Ottawa and board a ship. I
carry with me a dog-eared copy of The Arctic Grail in my pack and a
letter written by my cousins addressed to “Santa Claus at the North Pole.”
I fully expect to see a jolly old man in a red suit and so much more.
So much more.
In partnership with Students on Ice, the Government of Nunavut Department of
Environment is proud to offer three scholarships for Nunavut youth to
participate in the upcoming 2012 Students on Ice Arctic Expedition. These
scholarships have been awarded to three inspiring high school
students from across Nunavut.
Ashley Aupaluktuq-Burton from Rankin Inlet is one of
the students selected to join this year's Students on Ice Arctic
Expedition.
Students on Ice is an educational, not-for-profit, Canadian
organization, providing youth from around the world with ship-based
educational adventures to the Arctic and Antarctica. For more information
about Students on Ice and how to apply for a chance to participate
in next year’s Arctic expedition or upcoming Antarctic
expeditions visit: www.studentsonice.com
By Dale Clifford The Peterborough Examiner Sunday, June 24, 2012
It is a voyage of a lifetime for Peterborough’s Emma Arsenault.
The 17-year-old Grade 11 student at St. Peter’s Secondary School and
daughter of Ivan and Cindy Arsenault, is one of 80 high school aged (14-18)
students from around the world selected for the Students on Ice Arctic
Expedition July 29-Aug. 13. As far as she knows, she is the only one from
here.
The main objective of the program is to give youth a once-in-a-lifetime
opportunity to expand their knowledge about the circumpolar world and to gain a
new global perspective on the planet, its wonders and its present and future
challenges.
They fly out of Ottawa for Iqaluit, Nunavut where they board ship, the
Academic Ioffe, then explore the Eastern Canadian Artic, including Baffin
Island, for basically the first week and cross the Davis Strait to
Western Greenland in the second before heading back to the Nation’s
Capital.
With a team of 35 scientists, aboriginal elders, historians, artists,
innovators, leaders and polar experts on board, they will experience
shore landings, interpretive hikes, community visits, Zodiac cruises and
ship-based exploration.
Among the expedition activities are wildlife encounters with whales, seals,
polar bears, caribou and seabirds, visits to Arctic communities and
archaeological sites and studying, first-hand, the dynamics of climate
change.
Classroom activities are required, including presentations, workshops,
seminars, group discussions, research activities, Model Arctic Council meetings
and studying Arctic sovereignty, governance and development affairs and seeing
how these current issues affect Arctic environment, societies and international
relations.
It was all right down Arsenault’s alley as she hopes to become a marine
biologist.
“It will be an education and a chance to learn about the Arctic environment,
the culture, people, animals and the problems they are facing,” she said.
“It will involve hiking, viewing the landscape, learning about the area and
reflection. I will keep a journal. It will be my first time to the Arctic
and I‘m so excited about it. I have always had a huge interest in the Canadian
wilderness.”
Arsenault said she began to purse the expedition last summer when she found
out former local MP and MPP Peter Adams once did the same thing. She applied
for it in February and found out via email she had been accepted in March.
“I was pretty happy,” she said. ‘’It was something I really wanted to
do.”
Arsenault, who works part time at Roots 73 at Lansdowne Place, said she
developed an interest for the outdoors when she began camping with the family
at five and the interest in the wilderness and environment really took off
about four years ago. A family trip to St. John’s Newfoundland and Memorial
University, which has a strong marine biology program, also helped.
She is looking forward to hooking up with the other students as well.
“It’s going to be good to have the opportunity to meet everybody else who
has the same interest and goals,” she said. “My main goal is to appreciate
everything I find and take in as much as I can.”
The Georgian (Stephenville, Newfoundland) June 11, 2012
; "La fin d'une aventure polaire extraordinaire")
